Old barn, Giacomini Wetlands, Point Reyes Station

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photo by Donald Kinney

The thread-bare tire on the left here reminds me of how thinly I used to wear the recaps on my VW-Bug wheels. I would try to get every mile out of a tire. I've since reformed my ways and try to drive safely.



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photo by Donald Kinney

So, safely I drove, out to Point Reyes Station on Friday. I wanted to see if they had finished the restoration on the old barn. The government's TARP funds helped finance the improvements not only to the barn, but to the former Giacomini Ranch. The idea is to protect the intricate watershed of this area, since it flows directly into Tomales Bay and the Pacific Ocean.



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photo by Donald Kinney

The barn interior, in graphic detail.



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photo by Donald Kinney

And here's a drawing/painting I found on a galvanized piece of metal.
Jalos, the beautiful reddish-orange horse. A bit of folk-art.



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photo by Donald Kinney

So, to explain the environmental project in this area, here's the text from the information display at the Giacomini Wetlands Restoration Project:

The Giacomini Wetlands Restoration Project has restored over 550 acres of critical wetlands at the headwaters of Tomales Bay. Wetlands play an important role in the health of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.

In addition to restoring natural hydrologic and ecological processes, the project intends to enhance water quality at the site and in Tomales Bay. For more than 60 years, the levees built to maintain pastures associated with the Giacomini Dairy essentially funneled all flows from the upper part of the Lagunitas Creek watershed directly to Tomales Bay. Three major creeks actually merge just upstream of the Giacomini Wetlands: Lagunitas, Olema, and Bear Valley Creek. These creeks represent a sizable amount of freshwater inflow - and potential pollutant load - to Tomales Bay, with more than 66 percent of Tomales Bay's freshwater input coming from this drainage.

The original wetlands in this area were converted to dairy pastures in the 1940's for use by the Waldo Giacomini Ranch. The National Park Service purchased the ranch from the Giacomini family in 2000. The restored wetlands are part of the Northern District of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which is administered by Point Reyes National Seashore.

Construction of this wetlands restoration project was completed in winter 2008 and involved the demolition of ranch buildings and infrastructure, removal of levees and drainage ditches, creation of habitat for endangered species, and revegetation of key wetland areas with native plants. Additional restoration efforts at the Giacomini Ranch and Olema Marsh may be continued in the future, including additiional excavation of filled areas, continued removal of invasive non-native plant species, and revegetation.

The park continues to monitor and evaluate the success of this project in restoring critical wetland functions that will improve the health of Tomales Bay. Changes following restoration were dramatic and immediate. Within the first two years after restoration, the number of waterbird species jumped 66 percent from the number and species observed prior to restoration, and total numbers and densities of wintering waterbirds increased three-fold. Nitrates in wetland waters dropped 55 percent, and fecal coliform or pathogen indicators plummeted 93 percent. Tidewater goby, a federally endangered species, quickly moved into some of the new tidal channels, and California red-legged frog, a federally threatened species, moved into new freshwater marsh habitats.

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